X v ventilating and changing the temperature of buildings



UNI ED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY TILDEN, OF MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA.

VENTILATING AND CHANGING THE TEMPERATURE OF BUiLD INGS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 375,228, dated December 20, 1887.

Application filed October 11, 1886. Serial No. 215,845. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY TILDEN, a citi zen ofthe United States, and aresident of Minthe removal of ashes.

neapolis, county of Hennepin, State of Minnesota, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement inVentilatingand Changing the Temperature of Buildings, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to the ventilation of buildings and to the heating or cooling of the same; and it has for its object to draw out the foul air and supply fresh pure air of any desired temperature, "hot or cold, as desired, by means simple, economical, and eflicient. It consists of the construction hereinafter described and claimed.

At the bottom of a large central foul-airoutlet conduit, which may be a large chimney extended to the bottom of the cellar, I build a fire-magazine suitable for burning fuel especially adapted to produce a great deal of flame. For this purpose I build a brick firepot with a grate and ash-pit with its walls entirely independent of the walls of the chimney, the front wall being provided with suitable openings for the admission of fuel and The top of this fire-pot or magazine is preferably concave and converges to a suitable opening, to which Iattach a smoke and flame pipe of considerablelength, extending upward within the chimney. The

, top of this smoke and flame pipe is perforated with a large number of small holes.

Entering the chimney at a point above the fire-pot and below the top of the-smoke-pip'e are a series of foul-air tubes or pipes commu- I nicating with the various rooms to be vent-ilated. In my preferred construction I have a separate independent pipe from every room to the chimney at the point named. Each pipe communicates with its room by registers in the floor, the pipe being laid between the joists of the floor, and may be formed by the space between two joists, the floor, and the ceiling below. As many registers may be used as may be desired. In rooms of ordinary size I place four registers, oneat each corner, the two at each side or end communicating with the pipe or tube formed by the joist immediately below. These ducts thus formed by ing branch connecting with the chimney at the point named. All the rooms to be ventilated are connected in this way to the chimney by independent foul-air-outlet ducts. Independent ducts to each room are preferable to a main duct with channels, for the purpose of securing certain and uniform results. Otherwise interference and disturbance may be caused by drafts and changes of the winds. This is the construction for getting the foul air out when combustion is started in the firemagazine at the bottom of the chimney.

To supply the fresh air to take the place of the foul air removed, and to have this of any desired temperature, hot or cold, I provide a large intake air-duct communicating at one end with the external atmosphere and at the other with a suitable heating or cooling device through which or over which the air is passed and is heated or cooled to the desired temperature. From this heating or cooling device or a chamber directly-connected therewith independent air-ducts made by suitable pipes or channels in the walls or in any suitable way extend to each room opening into the same through a register at the top of the room and preferably through the ceiling in the middle of the room. the same reason as in the case of outlet-ducts. The fresh-air heating or cooling device may be located at any suitable convenient point of the building. If for heating, and a furnace be used, it will preferably be in the basement or cellar, and if its smoke-outlet be through the same chimney which isnsed to exhaust the foulair, as described, it should connect with said chimney through an opening in said smoke and flame pipe near its lower end somewhere below the perforations in the same.

The foregoing is a general description of my entire construction. It is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which like letters refer to like parts throughout, and in which- Figure 1 is a sectional elevation on line 3 y of Fig. 2. Fig. 2 isa plan view on theline may of Fig. 1.

H is the large central chimney extending from above the roof to the bottom of the cellar.

A is the firemagazine provided with grate a and flame and smoke pipe a.

B O D are the independent fonl-air-outlet ducts from the various rooms.

0 is the outlet for the first or lowest room. Registers c c c c c c in the corners and middle of the room allow the foul air to pass into the space between two joists below and thence to the duct 0 and through 0 to the chimney, as shown, above A,but below top of a.

BM is a similar duct from the second floor, there being a separate communicating-duct, b, as shown, from each set of registers to the large duct or pipe B. D (l d is a similar duct with separate channel (I to each set of registers in third floor. By similar arrangements outlet-ducts are provided from all the rooms.

In each duct, as shownin B, is an automatic valve, 1/ b, and stop 1/, which will permit the air to pass into the chimney, but will not allow any gases to pass into the duct from the chimney. This is simply a balanced metal valve pivoted within the foul-air duct near the point of entrance to the chimney. The stop 11' prevents the valve from opening from the chimney. This is simply a device to insure perfect secu *ity against the admission of gases from the chimney in the case of possible accident. There would be very little danger of such athing even ifno such valve be provided. The small arrows in the d ucts B and C show the direction of the movement of the foul air.

E F G are the independent fresh-air-inlet duets from the fresh-air chamber, where ithas been properly heated or cooled by furnace or cooler J, to the various rooms. E c, for example, conduct the fresh air to the first or lowest room. Ff do the same to the second room; G 9, (not shown,) to the third, and so on. The arrows at E F G and at c andf show the directions of movement of this fresh air.

In the drawings six registers are shown in the floor of each room for the escape of the foul air. In ordinary-sized rooms four registers, one at each corner, will be suiiicient. The fresh air is brought from the exterior of the building to the furnace or cooler J by a large intake duct. (Not shown.) E F G, &c., may be connected directly to the furnace .I, instead of the freshair chamber, as shown in the drawings.

The operation is as follows: Combustion having been started in the fire-pot at the bottom ofthc chimney, using soft wood or other flameprodncing fuel, the smokepipc will be filled with flame and smoke, and the air and gases above will be heated and will ascend out of the chimney. This will make apartial vacuum or a column of gases of less tension or weight in the chimney than the air in the various rooms. Atmospheric pressure will force the foul air out of the rooms and into the chimney. At this point it will be commingled with the flame in the smoke and flame pipe through the perforations in the same. The large quantity of oxygen in this stream of foul air will support and intensify the combustion in the smokepipe. Every particle of carbon supplied will be united with oxygen, giving off intense heat, and theresulting chemical and physical changes will continuously produce, or have a tendency to produce, a partial vacuu m, and theremaining and resultant gases, after the chemical changes caused by combustion, will be in a heated and highly-expanded state, rapidly ascending out of the chimney. The foul air from the various rooms will be continuously forced byatmospherie pressure into the chimney to fill or prevent the vacuum, keeping up the process continuously, while the fresh pure air will be continuously forced in through the intake duct by atmospheric pressure outside the building and will be discharged constantly into the rooms to replace the foul air withdrawn below, and thus maintain the equilibrium. Intermediate its point of entrance from the exterior and its delivery to the rooms the fresh air is brought to the desired temperature by heating or cooling by passing it through or over a suitable heating or cooling device. Thus the process is complete and continuous, and fresh pure airof any desired temperature is constantly supplied to the various parts of the buildin This is done, moreover, in such a way as to avoid drafts. The foul air passes outfrom thebottom of the room and the pure air passes in from a central register in the ceiling, distributing itself about the room by imperceptible currents in a uniform manner. The entire volume of air in any given room is changed every few minutes, and any nnmberof persons may occupy the sameas in schools and public assemblies-without injury to the health.

The chemical and physical changes in the flame and smoke. pipe a and chimney H are as follows: Carbon being supplied from firepot A, and when the system is used for heating by the products of imperfect (or incomplete) combustion from furnace J and meeting and being thoroughly commingled with the vast quantities of oxygen from the foulair tubes, is completely consumed, producing carbonic acid (with perhaps a little carbonic oxide) and water, (in form of steam,) giving off intense heat and leaving the nitrogen in free condition. By the heat produced all these gases and the steam are heated and in a highlyexpanded condition, and constitute a column of much less weight than the air outside or in the rooms. They therefore rapidly ascend out of the chimney and foul air from the rooms is forced in to take their place. There is therefore a. constant tendency to the production of a vacuum, which would be produced did not the air from rooms enter to prevent it. Moreover, this tendency cortinnes all the way up the chimney, for as the '=,.;roducts of combustion move away from flaine pipe a they will begin to lose heat, the stcanror vapor will condense, occupying less volume, and a partial vacuum will be formed, or tend to be formed, prevented only by supply of fresh products from below. Thus the strength of the current and rapidity of movementis maintained to the top of the chimney, and a large number of rooms or large space may be emp: tied of foul air by a comparatively small outlet. Attention should, however, be given to the matter of proportion. The outlet conduit or chimney should be of a capacity properly proportioned to the rooms orv space to be emptied of foul air and to the total fresh-airinlet pipes.

The process has been described as equally well adapted for supplying cool or warm air, and such is the fact. Its general use will be of course to supply warm air, and the system will enable the heating of large'buildings at greatly-reduced cost, besides the invaluable boon of pure air; but in hot weather it is equally desirable to cool buildings, and this can be done by simply passing the air through a cooling device instead of through a heating device; or it may be sufficient for ordinary requirements simply to take in large quantities of fresh air from the outside and keep up a rapid circulation without passing the air through a cooler. The large quantity and rapid movement would in ordinary cases keep the temperature low enough for comfort.

The process hercinbefore disclosed and the construction for applying the same are both of my invention. 7

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is as follows:

1. In combination, central chimney, H,fire pot or magazine A, located .in the chimney bottom, provided with the smoke and flame pipe at, terminating below the chimney-top, independent foul-air outlets B O D, provided with automatic valves 1) b b, connecting each with its respective room through registers b c d in the floor of the same and with the chimney H below the top of a and above the body of A, independent fresh-air inlet ducts E F G, connecting at one end through the ceiling by registers c f g, each with its respective room, and at the other, directly or indirectly,with the external atmosphere, and a heating or cooling device, J, intermediate the each with its respective room at one end andwith said chimney at the other end below the top of pipe a, fresh-air-inlet ducts E F G, connecting at one end each with its respective V room, and connecting at the other end,directly or indirectly, with the external atmosphere, and a heating or cooling device, J, intermediate the fresh-air intake and the point of dis charge into the rooms, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. In combination, a central shaft or chimney extending from above the roof to the bottom of the cellar, a foul-air burning and exhaust-producing firemagazine located within and at the bottom of said chimney and provided with a smoke and flame pipe extending a short distance up said chimney, but terminating below the top of the same, foul-air-outlet ducts from the various rooms connecting with said chimney below the top of said flame and smoke pipe, and suitable fresh-air-inlet ducts from the external atmosphere to the various rooms, substantially as described,

whereby complete and continuous ventilation is secured.

. HENRY TILDEN. Witnesses:

EMMA ELMORE, JAS. F. WILLIAMSON. 

